Doctors fear they could be prosecuted for assisting suicide if they produce
medical notes for terminally ill patients who go on to end their lives in a
clinic such as Dignitas in Switzerland.

The Medical Protection Society says GPs also want to know if they would be legally required to tell the authorities, should someone tell them they plan to travel to a so-called "suicide clinic".

The organisation, which provides legal and ethical advice to its 260,000 members in the medical profession, is demanding clarification of the circumstances under which doctors could be prosecuted under the Suicide Act 1961 for aiding, abetting or procuring a suicide. The crime is punishable by up to 14 years' imprisonment but no one has been prosecuted.

It says the move is necessary because Dignitas, which has helped more than 100 Britons end their lives over the past decade, requires patients to provide medical records showing they are suffering from an incurable condition as well as a doctor's note to say they can travel to Switzerland.

Dr Nick Clements, Head of Medical Services at the MPS, said: "Although patients in the UK have a legal right to request their medical records without giving a reason, if the patient is terminally ill the doctor may suspect that the patient is considering going elsewhere for an assisted suicide.

"Therefore doctors need clarification over whether they are at risk of prosecution if they provide reports about the patient's condition or fitness to travel in the knowledge that this information will be passed on to clinics like Dignitas.

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"We also need clarification over whether doctors have a duty to inform the authorities, either in the UK or elsewhere, if they are aware that their patient is intending to take their own life by way of assisted suicide. It is clear that this is a complex legal and ethical issue and a delicate emotional matter, however, the law remains unchanged at present and doctors who find themselves in such circumstances should be cautious and seek the advice of their Medical Defence Organisation, before they take any steps."

It comes as the Director of Public Prosecutions, Keir Starmer, QC, draws up a detailed policy on when prosecutions for assisted suicide would be launched.

The move was forced by the landmark court victory won by Debbie Purdy, who has multiple sclerosis, over her argument that the current law was unclear.

She wanted to know if her husband, Omar Puente, would face prosecution if he were to help her die at Dignitas one day.

The DPP later told this newspaper that his policy would also apply to people who help loved ones end their lives in England and Wales.